James Willshire

Heralded for performances of “spectacular musicianship and technical brilliance” (The Scotsman), “evangelizing urgency” (International Record Review) and “freshness and lucidity” (The Herald Scotland), James Willshire has been praised for the virtuosity and intelligence of his pianism and has developed a reputation for his interpretations of British and French music. He has appeared as soloist at the Royal Festival Hall, Barbican, Bridgewater Hall, St John’s Smith Square, Purcell Room, Palau de la Musica (Petit Palau), Glasgow City Halls, Queens Hall Edinburgh, Perth Concert Hall, St George’s Bristol, Caird Hall and the Fairfield Halls.

A specialist in the music of Debussy, in 2018 James performed the complete cycle of the composer’s solo piano music. These concerts, described by The Herald Scotland as “an unmissable opportunity to hear these demanding pieces live”, included complete cycles in Glasgow and Edinburgh, and individual concerts in the Leeds International Concert Season and at Chetham’s School of Music.

James is a committed advocate of contemporary music, and has given over 25 world premiere performances of works by Ronald Stevenson, John McLeod, Rory Boyle, Nicola LeFanu, Robin Holloway, Errollyn Wallen, Thomas Simaku, Jay Capperauld, Jia Chai, Lynne Plowman, David Lancaster, Michael Parkin, Ailís Ní Ríain and David Power. His performance of ‘Endlings’ by Jay Capperauld with the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland received a five-star review from The Herald and was broadcast on BBC Radio Scotland.